The oldest surviving clipper clipper ship, City of Adelaide, was towed on its barge to Chatham where she will be fumigated. In mid-October, the 1864 built composite clipper ship will be moved to Greenwich, near the just slightly younger composite … Continue reading
Category Archives: Current
What is worse than an oil spill? A molasses spill, apparently. There are ways to clean up after an oil spill, whereas no one knows how clean up spilled molasses. Earlier this month, a Matson pipeline spilled 1,400 tons (233,000 … Continue reading
Oracle Team USA has come screaming back from what appeared to be an impossible deficit, winning the last 7 races. In total races, they have now won 10 to the Kiwi’s 8. Only the two race penalty assessed for past … Continue reading
For thirty years, Greenpeace has used “non-violent direct action” in their environmental protests. In recent years, Greenpeace activists have boarded drilling platforms to disrupt operations. In most cases, the protesters involved were arrested, made to pay fines for trespass and were … Continue reading
If you take a cruise on a ship owned by Carnival, you may want to bring along a flashlight. The newest Princess Cruises ship, the Royal Princess, suffered a power outage while sailing between Mykonos and Naples. Power was reported to … Continue reading
After looking like they were in an impossibly deep hole, Oracle Team USA has come charging back. Only last Wednesday, Emirates Team New Zealand was on the verge of winning the America’s Cup. They had won 8 of the 9 … Continue reading
On July 24th, the Dutch sail-training brig Astrid sank after running aground on rocks on the Irish coast on the western mouth of Oysterhaven, near Cork. On September 13th, the ship was lifted off the rocks using a 937-tonne floating … Continue reading
On Wednesday I raised the question – is history just a sea story? I found in researching my novel, Hell Around the Horn, that two memoirs written about the voyage of the British windjammer, British Isles, on which the novel … Continue reading
In June, we posted about the Safe Affordable Ferry Design Competition, sponsored by the World Ferry Safety Association, in which student teams from six maritime universities competed to develop a ferry design for a 500 passenger ferry for Bangladesh. Recently the … Continue reading
I would like to thank all the readers and supporters of the Old Salt Blog. Today is the fifth anniversary of the very first post, five years ago. So happy birthday to us all. Since September 19th, 2008, the blog … Continue reading
At first it looked like the 34th America’s Cup races would be a route. Emirates Team New Zealand was simply out-sailing the defender, Oracle Team USA. Not only was the crew making fewer mistakes but the Kiwi’s boat seemed noticeably … Continue reading
In brisk winds on Saturday, Emirates Team New Zealand’s hopes of winning the America’s Cup nearly came to an end when they came perilously close to capsizing during a tack in Race 8 of the Americas’ Cup races in San … Continue reading
Tomorrow, if all goes well, a small army of engineers, technicians and mariners will attempt to roll the stricken cruise ship, Costa Concordia, upright from where she sank on the island of Giglio on January 13, 2012. Once upright the … Continue reading
Scout is on its way to Spain! It is a twelve foot long autonomous robotic boat designed to cross the Atlantic Ocean, relying only on pre-programmed commands and information that it can collect about its environment through sensors. Built by a … Continue reading
The Emirates Team New Zealand challengers continue their winning streak against the defending Oracle Team USA, winning races 6 and 7. The Kiwis need only three more races to win the best of nine series to win the America’s Cup. … Continue reading
A very interesting opportunity posted on the Tall Ship Challenge Official Blog: Looking for more sea time and experience? Picton Castle is looking for apprentices to join them in the Pacific. For the cost of room and board, you can … Continue reading
Of all the things worth remembering on 9/11, one incredible event is often overlooked. After the attack, all the bridges, tunnels and rail lines in and out of New York City were shut down. Somewhere between 300,000 and one million people … Continue reading
As reported by NPR: A fire aboard a cargo ship in the Mediterranean Sea was set in order to get rid of 30 tons of hashish, according to officials in Italy and Malta. Authorities had approached the Gold Star, a … Continue reading
Two hundred years ago today, in what would become known as the Battle of Lake Erie, a squadron of ships under the command of Oliver Hazard Perry defeated and captured a Royal Navy squadron at Put-in-Bay in Lake Erie off the … Continue reading
In April we posted about a drifting Nautor Swan 48 sailboat named Wolfhound which had been abandoned in a storm just north of Bermuda in February by her owner, Alan McGettigan, and a crew of three. Initially, the boat was … Continue reading